Hello

Hey there I'm Dwidick I'm new to the chicken world just got 5 day old Buff orphingtons pullets last week and totally love em. Been socializing them with the kids and my other animals but from a distance.

I'm rather proud of them now I gotta figure out what I'm going to do as far as a coup. Looking through designs now and the prefab versions are cheaply built and to dang expensive.

Click to expand...

If at all possible, I'd recommend you stay away from the prefabs. Most of them are not well made (and yes, very expensive)...they also seem to over estimate how many chickens can fit into them. There are about as many ways of building a coop as there are poultry keepers. Some people build Taj Mahal's and some use reclaimed materials like pallets to build coops. I've even seen some nice ones made from old plastic kid's playhouses. Use your imagination when it comes to materials. Where you do not want to skimp on cost is on predator protection and size of coop.

Make your coop as large as you can because the chickens will do best with plenty of space. Also make it as strong as possible to keep them from becoming another animal's dinner (hardware cloth is not cheap but it's less expensive in the long run than replacing your entire flock).

Thanks for the tips. I have an ok sized area to put it. I'm not known for skimping on anything I'd rather spend the money once then buy twice. Also looking to use a little bit of reclaimed pallets at work.

It's appreciated. My orphies are very much love here at home. Kids want to hold them all the time but I limit their exposure to the kids. I handle them quite a bit for socialization but not enough to stress them or cause them to get chilled. I will definitely ask the questions as they come up.